Article: My Name Is Sal Gusmano, and I Break Ford Vehicles for a Living (at Michigan Proving Grounds)

[Roger123]

Well now I know how my Bronco arrived with about 70 miles on it.
It had a note it was selected for testing. I think that is cool, 3 years later it’s a great vehicle.

Hopefully Sal didn't put those miles on!

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[FourHorses]

What I want to know is how it was missed that my windows freeze up when my car sits overnight. Why do I have to fully warm my car with the heat blasting before I can close my doors. I have a manual, so remote start is not an option. Never had this issue with my Mustangs with frameless windows. It’s very frustrating.

 

[MTMan]

I would love a job doing this!

The thing about testing I wonder about is that even though they try to simulate say 10 years, 150,000 miles I never hear about how they service it during that time and I'm sure there's always something I would think you cannot simulate for.

 

[Figmo]

I have a 24 bronco wildtrak sasquach. Im 4L with lockers on in mud I get a 4wd temporarily unavailable notice pop up. So now Im stuck in the mud and need to get pulled out. I've been told wheel speed sensors, disconnect battery and let sit while other people are waiting!! It's rather a pain.

At least you have us to occupy your time while you wait.

 

[Felix808]

Best job in the world!
With Chinese cars coming to Canada soon, ya think they do this kinda testing??
100% no, I'll guarantee ya that!

One might say easiest job in the world as some things break easier than others

 

[MTMan]

Best job in the world!
With Chinese cars coming to Canada soon, ya think they do this kinda testing??
100% no, I'll guarantee ya that!

That'll be interesting to see how those hold up when it's -40 or below trying to start or open a frozen door.

 

[HotdogThud]

Shame he didn’t conduct the “ window partially down” test to bring it to the attention of engineering that the glass rattles around.

Or that they won't roll up if there's a pebble on the road

 

[Imaginary Friend]

Aha! Now I know who to blame for my issue-laden F150!

It had to be part of this kind of abuse, given all the things it's been in the shop for within its first 30K miles.

 

[jensht]

Best job in the world!
With Chinese cars coming to Canada soon, ya think they do this kinda testing??
100% no, I'll guarantee ya that!

I guess your 100% guarantee isn't worth much. The large Chinese automotive companies all do similar testing nowadays. To sell in western markets they had to quickly improve their engineering. Similar to what the Japanese and South Korean brands went through. First they sold pretty shoddy cheap cars, and now look at the products they are building. The Chinese just got there much quicker. It is amazing to look at the engineering improvements on some of their cars just within the last 5 years.

 

[GeoBig]

Best job in the world!
With Chinese cars coming to Canada soon, ya think they do this kinda testing??
100% no, I'll guarantee ya that!

A country that actually WANTS cheap Chinese crap? There are enough videos and enough commentary from insiders on YouTube about Chinese car quality, and it is not good. Dangerous in fact. I guess your Prime Minister leads like Chamberlain did in 1938 -- here's to hoping Canada doesn't give too much advantage to the CCP before they come knocking for real in 10-20 years.

 

[swamp2]

I have to ask how simple things were missed such as steering rack and tie rods. I know anything can break and OEM is not for extreme use. But it seems these items are way under built for the way vehicle is marketed.

Have you considered that the tie rods are basically a mechanical fuse? They absolutely are. They will fail first protecting much more expensive parts/systems that are also more labor intensive to repair.

 

[skiptheroad]

January 12, 2026

Words by Sal Gusmano, unit supervisor for vehicle evaluation and verification at Michigan Proving Grounds.


My Name Is Sal Gusmano, and I Break Ford Vehicles for a Living

As a kid, I used to ride past Michigan Proving Grounds (MPG) and ask my parents what goes on behind the fences. Today, as a third-generation Ford employee, I’ve been on the other side for 34 years. I’m a specially trained and certified Tier 4 driver — one of 25 in the world.


At MPG, it’s my job to evaluate vehicle safety, durability, and performance by pushing the vehicles to and even past their limits. Ford hires professional drivers like me to test, prove out, and even abuse our products in a controlled environment before they ever go on sale.

But let’s be clear — I’m not trying to demonstrate what a vehicle can or can’t do or how it should be driven outside of this controlled test environment. Off the job, I drive safely: I follow the traffic laws, stay within my skill level, and always refer to the Owner’s Manual for the right way to operate the vehicle. As they say on television, don’t try this at home.


These proving grounds are among the largest in the U.S. and home to the highest point in Michigan’s Macomb County at 1,150 feet. MPG’s Trombly Mountain has a steeper grade than San Francisco’s famed Lombard Street, and at a 29% grade, it allows us to test vehicles’ climbing ability.

To make our trucks Built Ford Tough, we also created concrete-surfaced tracks with bumps, chuckholes, and broken concrete pieces permanently set in concrete. This testing is too brutal for humans, so now it is all done autonomously — allowing us to accelerate customer usage in a condensed time frame.


Overall, MPG contains more than 100 miles of roads, including a high-speed track, rough roads, durability tracks, steep grades, and a vehicle dynamics area, in addition to an assortment of support structures and buildings.

“Some of this testing is too brutal for humans, so now it is done autonomously, allowing us to accelerate customer usage in a condensed timeframe.”​

​

For example, there are a lot of F-Series Super Duty trucks used for snow removal. The last thing you’d want is for the airbags to go off when a snowplow hits a curb, a common occurrence when clearing snow. So, we test for that.


These airbag sensor tests are no joke — we’re trying to simulate crashes without actually being in one! Once, I took an Explorer prototype on an off-road course where I hit deep ruts filled with water at full speed. The impact of the water was so intense that the force blew all the body plugs out of the bulkhead, the divider that separates a vehicle’s cabin area from the engine compartment. My face was covered in mud, and I had to lift the shield on my helmet so I could see where I was going.

Those wooded courses aren’t just for off-road vehicles, either. I once took a Mustang through an area we call grassy moguls. The mechanics who followed me in for backup were actually the ones who had to be pulled out of the deep, muddy ruts.


Another good example of sensor abuse testing is the bowl jump, where I drive up and over embankments several times, increasing my speed by 5 mph each time. This helps us improve our vehicle safety systems by differentiating between minor collisions and more severe impacts.

I’ve been a unit supervisor since 2008, and a big part of my role is ensuring track safety at our facility, as well as evaluating new tests to help create even more dynamic and unique situations for us to observe our vehicles. My priority is that these tests are conducted safely and that the data we’re recording is accurate and reliable for our Ford engineers.


We’re constantly developing new courses and elements to test products, like what we did for the Mustang Mach-E Rally. We worked with the program’s engineers to create a real-world rally crosscourse to simulate 10 years of wear and tear over 500 miles of full-send driving to test whether the product was progressing according to our expectations.

"That’s what our job is here, working to make a better product. And it’s all hands on deck when there’s a problem that needs to be resolved.”​

Sometimes, we’re even called on to develop a one-off testing environment to replicate what we call a “job stopper” — an issue that we need to help our Ford teams solve ASAP. That’s what our job is here: working to make a better product. And it’s all hands on deck when there’s a problem that needs to be solved.


It’s an exciting job, and it is incredibly rewarding knowing that what we do here at MPG helps make sure our customers have vehicles that are ready for anything.


Sal Gusmano is a unit supervisor for vehicle evaluation and verification at Michigan Proving Grounds.

This is such a great story and brings up some of my fondest memories. I grew up in the 70's on 36 mile Road across from the proving grounds, right across from the big white barns on the north side of the grounds. My parents had a Bronco and our neighbor, Ricky Shapman had a Chevy Blazer. Back in the 70's the north gate across from Fisher Road was often left open over the weekends. As a kid, I had a lot of fun exploring those trails and hills in the back of my parents Bronco. Ricky along with his kids often tagged along with us in there Blazer. Those trails are some of the most challenging in the state.

 

[Area51BS]

Have you considered that the tie rods are basically a mechanical fuse? They absolutely are. They will fail first protecting much more expensive parts/systems that are also more labor intensive to repair.

Sure have. They put them in because of the cheap rack. Fine for the street. Not quite tough enough for the marketing the Bronco received. Ford did come out with an upgrade option on more recent years. When ties rods, racks, window issues and many other common issues we see so often it’s either a poor design or poor by choice. Don’t get me wrong, love the Bronco. Just my opinion.

 

[Broncolander]

January 12, 2026

Words by Sal Gusmano, unit supervisor for vehicle evaluation and verification at Michigan Proving Grounds.


My Name Is Sal Gusmano, and I Break Ford Vehicles for a Living

As a kid, I used to ride past Michigan Proving Grounds (MPG) and ask my parents what goes on behind the fences. Today, as a third-generation Ford employee, I’ve been on the other side for 34 years. I’m a specially trained and certified Tier 4 driver — one of 25 in the world.


At MPG, it’s my job to evaluate vehicle safety, durability, and performance by pushing the vehicles to and even past their limits. Ford hires professional drivers like me to test, prove out, and even abuse our products in a controlled environment before they ever go on sale.

But let’s be clear — I’m not trying to demonstrate what a vehicle can or can’t do or how it should be driven outside of this controlled test environment. Off the job, I drive safely: I follow the traffic laws, stay within my skill level, and always refer to the Owner’s Manual for the right way to operate the vehicle. As they say on television, don’t try this at home.


These proving grounds are among the largest in the U.S. and home to the highest point in Michigan’s Macomb County at 1,150 feet. MPG’s Trombly Mountain has a steeper grade than San Francisco’s famed Lombard Street, and at a 29% grade, it allows us to test vehicles’ climbing ability.

To make our trucks Built Ford Tough, we also created concrete-surfaced tracks with bumps, chuckholes, and broken concrete pieces permanently set in concrete. This testing is too brutal for humans, so now it is all done autonomously — allowing us to accelerate customer usage in a condensed time frame.


Overall, MPG contains more than 100 miles of roads, including a high-speed track, rough roads, durability tracks, steep grades, and a vehicle dynamics area, in addition to an assortment of support structures and buildings.

“Some of this testing is too brutal for humans, so now it is done autonomously, allowing us to accelerate customer usage in a condensed timeframe.”​

​

For example, there are a lot of F-Series Super Duty trucks used for snow removal. The last thing you’d want is for the airbags to go off when a snowplow hits a curb, a common occurrence when clearing snow. So, we test for that.


These airbag sensor tests are no joke — we’re trying to simulate crashes without actually being in one! Once, I took an Explorer prototype on an off-road course where I hit deep ruts filled with water at full speed. The impact of the water was so intense that the force blew all the body plugs out of the bulkhead, the divider that separates a vehicle’s cabin area from the engine compartment. My face was covered in mud, and I had to lift the shield on my helmet so I could see where I was going.

Those wooded courses aren’t just for off-road vehicles, either. I once took a Mustang through an area we call grassy moguls. The mechanics who followed me in for backup were actually the ones who had to be pulled out of the deep, muddy ruts.


Another good example of sensor abuse testing is the bowl jump, where I drive up and over embankments several times, increasing my speed by 5 mph each time. This helps us improve our vehicle safety systems by differentiating between minor collisions and more severe impacts.

I’ve been a unit supervisor since 2008, and a big part of my role is ensuring track safety at our facility, as well as evaluating new tests to help create even more dynamic and unique situations for us to observe our vehicles. My priority is that these tests are conducted safely and that the data we’re recording is accurate and reliable for our Ford engineers.


We’re constantly developing new courses and elements to test products, like what we did for the Mustang Mach-E Rally. We worked with the program’s engineers to create a real-world rally crosscourse to simulate 10 years of wear and tear over 500 miles of full-send driving to test whether the product was progressing according to our expectations.

"That’s what our job is here, working to make a better product. And it’s all hands on deck when there’s a problem that needs to be resolved.”​

Sometimes, we’re even called on to develop a one-off testing environment to replicate what we call a “job stopper” — an issue that we need to help our Ford teams solve ASAP. That’s what our job is here: working to make a better product. And it’s all hands on deck when there’s a problem that needs to be solved.


It’s an exciting job, and it is incredibly rewarding knowing that what we do here at MPG helps make sure our customers have vehicles that are ready for anything.


Sal Gusmano is a unit supervisor for vehicle evaluation and verification at Michigan Proving Grounds.

All that testing and you guys still decided to give the rock crawl trim a weak steering system hey jokes aside, that’s pretty rad!! Thanks for sharing!

 

[Area51BS]

He's testing stock vehicles. Not ones that have been lifted with oversized tires. Every post I've seen on here where someone broke a tie rod, the Bronco was lifted with oversized tires.

I've even asked for posts from people who brock a tie rod in a stock vehicle.

I could be wrong. Seems common on 35’s. Regardless. That rack is a disgrace. Thin cast aluminum.

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